RENTON — Tony Jones Jr. is looking for a second chance.
On Monday the Seahawks selected the third-year running back off waivers from New Orleans, after learning that starter Rashaad Penny will miss the rest of the season because of a broken fibula.
Jones, who joined the Saints in 2020 as an undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame, was waived by New Orleans on Saturday, a day before the Saints’ 39-32 win over Seattle.
After finishing recording 59 rushes for 163 yards and seven receptions for 41 yards in 14 games with the Saints, Jones is eager for a fresh start.
“It’s just giving me a chance to have a clean slate,” Jones said. “Just to like, make my name in here, or make my name somewhere else. I just want someone to know that I’m valued or appreciated or something like that.”
Though he is joining a new franchise in a part of the country he has rarely visited, the Florida native doesn’t think it will take long for him to get up to speed in coordinator Shane Waldron’s offense.
“To be honest, they’re both kind of the same offenses,” Jones said of the Seahawks and Saints. “[It’s] the same type of run scheme and all that, so I like it and I think it fits my play style a lot.”
With Penny going on injured reserve, the Seahawks were left with just two running backs on the active roster in rookie Kenneth Walker III and DeeJay Dallas.
The Seahawks could elevate Darwin Thompson from the practice squad, but it appears Jones will get an opportunity to be Walker’s backup on first and second downs Sunday against Arizona.
“We don’t have much time, he has to go,” coach Pete Carroll said of Jones. “He has to get ready this week. The elevation opportunities and moving guys, we have some guys that can play. I wish Darwin Thompson had a chance to step in this week, but depending on how it goes that opportunity might not be there for him, so Tony [Jones] has to go. You can only elevate two guys off of the practice squad, so we have to be smart with the way we do that.”
Jones has shown explosive ability. As a senior at Notre Dame he rushed for a team-high 857 yards on 144 carries for six touchdowns and had 15 receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown.
Jones developed a reputation as a bruising running back at the college level, and was likened to former Saints back Pierre Thomas for his size (5 feet 11, 224 pounds), athleticism and pass-blocking abilities. After spending most of his 2020 rookie year on New Orleans’ practice squad, Jones suffered an ankle sprain in Week 4 of the 2021 season and missed five games. He finished the season with 54 carries for 142 yards and five receptions for 29 yards.
Jones played 35 snaps on offense and six on special teams this season and was a healthy scratch his last two weeks.
“This guy made their team. He’s been with them all year to this point,” Carroll said. “He’s a strong, tough, versatile guy, catches the ball OK coming out of the backfield. We are looking for some immediate boost, particularly in the depth.”
Jones hasn’t spent much time on the West Coast, but he has a close friend who can show him around in high-school classmate and tight end Tyler Mabry, who is on the Seahawks’ practice squad.
Mabry and Jones attended the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and have remained good friends. Mabry said he was excited when he got a text from Jones about joining the Seahawks.
“It feels like being a kid again,” Mabry said. “It’s good seeing him, I get excited every time I see him. But he’s a workhorse, you know we ran the ball a lot at IMG, so to see him back I know he’s going to be great here.”